Winemaking in Béarn France

Read the blog: http://www.eurodestination.com/Short%20Breaks/France/bearn-and-the-basque-cou...

Photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/66816105@N03/sets/72157627745033807/

With the kind courtesy of Sebastien and Fabrice Bordenave, I was able to film their grape harvest for their Mostesquieu wine, a Jurancon wine which is prevalent in this part of France the Bearn region. I wasn't the only visitor that day, a group of school children were also there, learning about the ways of their region and probably of their long gone ancestors.
I sensed a strong feeling of community here, both brothers and their families lived on the property alongside their parents, and grandparent, and all the harvest help was drawn from the local village of Monein. Many there had been involved in the grape harvest here for decades.
Of particular note was that a number of the older folk spoke the Occitan dialect of Béarnese, a language related to the Gascon language. Needless to say I couldn't understand any of it, as my French is poor, but it sounded like Spanish to me. It is a language under threat, as many schools didn't allow it until recently. It benefitted from the fact that Béarn was an independent state in the 14th century, with its capital in the nearby city of Pau.
All the grapes on this farm (which amounted to 9 ha's in total) were picked by hand, mainly because the hills were so steep and that a careful selection of grapes made for better wine.
My thanks go again to the Bordenave family for opportunity of making this video.

I have a set of photos for this region on my flickr page: http://www.flickr.com/photos/66816105@N03/sets/72157627745033807/

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[robmasterman]

A superbly told story Gary...giving all the information required to see the processes in French wine making....Bob

[eurodestination]

@robmasterman ...and a lovely experience Bob, such nice people

[Paulmanorbier]

What a beautifully made video. Superb cinematography, with a strong flavour of rural community and a hint of the Summer turning to Autumn. Cheers!

[eurodestination]

@Paulmanorbier Thanks again Paul. The people were great, especially when I was introduced as a Welsh rugby fanatic. They're equally crazy about rugby down there, but not very happy at the time after France just got beaten by Tonga. I also experienced the Bearn dialect amongst the older folk, which is more like Spanish than French (apparently)

[kikebjj]

aahhh the wine! the syrup of the truth! love your videos! superb!

[YourHolidayTV]

superb video and very interesting.